Edward Norton Interview

Norton On Milla Jovovich

Audiences and critics alike have a great respect for you and your work. People often refer to you as a smart actor. Is this a reputation you strive for?

Edward Norton: No, no [laughing], I really don’t know what that means. I don’t know what to say to that… I’m trying to think of the things that I’ve done that would indicate [laughs] "smart." I don’t know, Death to Smoochy?

We actually enjoyed that film.

EN: I love it.

You have releases on two fronts, Leaves of Grass on DVD and Stone, which was just released in theaters. Do you follow reviews and box office results when your films come out?

EN: It depends on what kind of film it is. When you make a film like Stone, which we made for very little money, it doesn’t have the same pressure as other projects. We made it intentionally in a very stripped down way, so that it wasn’t carrying the kind of weight, that kind of pressure, which is nice. A film like that I think needs time, and it needs an audience sometimes to talk about it to other people.

I would put it in the category of films like American History X or 25th Hour or even Fight Club, because it’s a film that is very dense and very full of ideas and leaves a lot for you to think about. I think people who like those films will definitely like this one, but they’re not always necessarily the most mass commercial ventures.

I’m asking this too in the case of DVD releases, like Leaves of Grass finding a new audience when it comes out in that market.

EN: Yeah, for sure. Leaves of Grass was made for virtually nothing and we knew it would be an art-house release or limited release, but I think it’s building such a reputation already; I think it will probably do very well.

Playing the twins in that film and the arsonist in Stone, you’re again taking on very complex roles. You’re known to tackle people on the brink, people who are often considered detestable. What keeps you coming back to these characters?

EN: I think they’re difficult. They are a lot of what pulled me into acting in the first place, watching people like Robert De Niro do roles like Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and TheKing of Comedy and many, many others, and character actors who were doing experienced, complicated roles. I’ve always been drawn to them as a movie fan as much as an actor.

You are especially skilled at bringing out the redeeming qualities of problematic characters.

EN: Well, I don’t feel that I’ve played so many bad guys, and I’m rot really drawn to villains per se. I think a lot of people relate to some of my characters’ inner struggles. I mean the guy in Fight Club is pretty f*cked up in a lot of ways people recognize in themselves. I think that’s what makes those movies fun. When you can see through these characters, how they change, they can speak to people.

So was it a nice departure for you to appear on Modern Family last year?

EN: Sure [laughing]. I’m going to be the first to declare on AskMen that Ty Burrell is a comic genius.

You even toned down your music abilities for that role because you play quite well, especially on Leaves of Grass.

EN: Yeah, in Leaves of Grass, thank you… Steve Earle was in the film and he was Townes Van Zandt’s protege, and I play guitar, but he taught me how Townes played the songs and that was like the most amazing thing. But I won’t be releasing my Modern Family bass-playing skills on iTunes anytime soon.

You revisit your Ivy League roots as a professor on this film and you just spoke at a university to discuss Stone. Any desire to go into academia again at some point?

EN: No, definitely not for me.

Did you enjoy working with Milla Jovovich on Stone? She’s made quite the successful transition from being a supermodel to becoming an actress.

EN: I think anybody will be quite shocked. She’s really… she’s going to get awards for this - I’m confident. She was really amazing in this.

What have you been busy with this year?

EN: Brad Pitt and I are producing HBO’s next big miniseries called Undaunted Courage, about the Lewis and Clark expeditions.

Will you be starring in it as well?

EN: We haven’t made any decisions about that yet. We’re working very hard on the script and producing it.

So is there a different kind of thrill when you’re the producer? Do you have your hands in everything?

EN: Sometimes I do, but producing I think is my least favorite role.

I understand you’re still active as a philanthropist and activist as well. You started the site Crowdrise, for instance. Can you tell us more about it?

EN: Yeah, Crowdrise.com. I put a lot into it last year with my three partners. There were three of us, all friends, who had put together a fundraising campaign last year when I ran the New York Marathon. We raised about $1.2 million in eight weeks. So many people were asking how we did the things we did. We got together and built it out into a website that anybody can use. It’s by far the most fun you can have making a difference in the world -- without smoking anything.

Anybody who is running a marathon or doing a walkathon, doing a fundraiser for their school, their company, by far it’s guaranteed the easiest and most fun way to quickly set up a fundraising campaign and send it around to your friends and family. I think we’ve already been receiving stats that people are raising 60 percent more than on any comparable thing.

Had you always intended the site to have a humorous tone?

EN: If you don’t give back no one will like you…

Yes, that’s a great tagline.

EN: People seem to really like it. A lot of it is my partner Robert who is very irreverent and hilarious. And raising money for good causes, the last thing it should be is boring and serious. It should be fun, and I think with young people especially we want them to think this stuff is fun.

Young people know how to use these social networking tools, and they know how to use them effectively. It’s like go search and destroy with our fundraising website. We launched it in May, and there has been $1 million donated through our site in a relatively short time. It’s really picking up.

How do you balance all these projects?

EN: It’s too much, it’s definitely too much [laughing]. I’m definitely trying to peel away some things because I would really like to have a life.